Still no spoilers--but very satisfied
After being disappointed in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, I'll admit I was a little worried about the final book. Sure, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince was a solid book that I enjoyed, but there were a lot of loose ends to wrap up. Would Rowling sacrifice pace just to get in all the details that were left open?
I'm pleased to say that I was not in the least disappointed in this book. The pacing was incredible and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is easily the best book in the series. It's a fitting ending and I'll confess to being highly satisfied.
First off, the experience of reading the book was a good one--as in the others, I laughed aloud several times. However, I also cried several times throughout the book, sometimes for grief, sometimes for joy, and sometimes because the satisfaction and thrill was so great. It was, overall, a very emotional read.
It also did a wonderful job of finishing the story. It's over and I'm not left longing for more or wondering about open-ended storylines. It's done, it was wonderful, and now it is time for another story in another world.
Monday, July 23, 2007
Friday, July 20, 2007
No spoilers here
I couldn't call myself a book blogger and not write about one of the biggest book events of the decade: the release of the final Harry Potter book.
I've read with ambivalence the outcry over the early review published in a New York paper. On one hand, I understand the journalistic urge. It really is a coup to be able to publish the first Harry Potter review--something that a newspaper can't do unless it gets an advance copy. For them, it's a triumph.
However, there is really no way to review this book without including spoilers. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is a book that doesn't need reviews. People already know it is coming, know its exact release time and know whether or not they want to read it.
What readers can use are critiques--but those won't be useful to readers until after they've already read the book. It is after they read that they're going to be looking to engage in discussion and they're going to want the vocabulary to have a discussion that goes beyond "I really liked it" or "I hated it."
Ultimately, that is the job of a good critic and a good artist. The artist provides the art that engages people. The critic helps people to understand why it engaged them and to help them enter into a deeper connection with the art.
So while it was a journalistic coup, I'm not sure the New York Times paper did themselves any favors by publishing an article that people are going to purposely avoid until after they've had time to read the book themselves.
In the mean time...13 more hours and 10 minutes.
I couldn't call myself a book blogger and not write about one of the biggest book events of the decade: the release of the final Harry Potter book.
I've read with ambivalence the outcry over the early review published in a New York paper. On one hand, I understand the journalistic urge. It really is a coup to be able to publish the first Harry Potter review--something that a newspaper can't do unless it gets an advance copy. For them, it's a triumph.
However, there is really no way to review this book without including spoilers. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is a book that doesn't need reviews. People already know it is coming, know its exact release time and know whether or not they want to read it.
What readers can use are critiques--but those won't be useful to readers until after they've already read the book. It is after they read that they're going to be looking to engage in discussion and they're going to want the vocabulary to have a discussion that goes beyond "I really liked it" or "I hated it."
Ultimately, that is the job of a good critic and a good artist. The artist provides the art that engages people. The critic helps people to understand why it engaged them and to help them enter into a deeper connection with the art.
So while it was a journalistic coup, I'm not sure the New York Times paper did themselves any favors by publishing an article that people are going to purposely avoid until after they've had time to read the book themselves.
In the mean time...13 more hours and 10 minutes.
